NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC Raises Stock Position in HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA)

NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC grew its holdings in shares of HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA) by 6.2% during the first quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 3,977 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 231 shares during the quarter. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC’s holdings in HCA Healthcare were worth $1,374,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in HCA. Brighton Jones LLC purchased a new stake in shares of HCA Healthcare during the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,021,000. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC increased its stake in shares of HCA Healthcare by 15.4% during the fourth quarter. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC now owns 2,288 shares of the company’s stock worth $687,000 after buying an additional 305 shares during the period. Savant Capital LLC boosted its holdings in HCA Healthcare by 4.1% in the fourth quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 3,673 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,102,000 after purchasing an additional 146 shares in the last quarter. Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC boosted its holdings in HCA Healthcare by 43.4% in the fourth quarter. Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC now owns 859 shares of the company’s stock valued at $258,000 after purchasing an additional 260 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Avestar Capital LLC boosted its holdings in HCA Healthcare by 27.5% in the fourth quarter. Avestar Capital LLC now owns 1,149 shares of the company’s stock valued at $345,000 after purchasing an additional 248 shares in the last quarter. 62.73% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

HCA Healthcare Trading Down 0.2%

NYSE:HCA opened at $370.76 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $358.43 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $333.18. The stock has a market capitalization of $89.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.88, a PEG ratio of 1.10 and a beta of 1.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 69.07, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 1.08. HCA Healthcare, Inc. has a 1 year low of $289.98 and a 1 year high of $417.14.

HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 25th. The company reported $6.45 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.75 by $0.70. The firm had revenue of $18.32 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $18.26 billion. HCA Healthcare had a return on equity of 586.47% and a net margin of 8.16%. HCA Healthcare’s revenue was up 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $5.36 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that HCA Healthcare, Inc. will post 24.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

HCA Healthcare Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 16th will be given a $0.72 dividend. This represents a $2.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.78%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 16th. HCA Healthcare’s dividend payout ratio is currently 12.81%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on HCA. Robert W. Baird reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $336.00 price target (down from $396.00) on shares of HCA Healthcare in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price objective on HCA Healthcare from $384.00 to $376.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 28th. Morgan Stanley set a $410.00 price objective on HCA Healthcare and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, June 9th. Guggenheim began coverage on HCA Healthcare in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. They issued a “neutral” rating for the company. Finally, Baird R W downgraded HCA Healthcare from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, HCA Healthcare presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $392.47.

Insider Activity

In other news, COO Jon M. Foster sold 15,698 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $369.32, for a total value of $5,797,585.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 12,646 shares in the company, valued at $4,670,420.72. This trade represents a 55.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

HCA Healthcare Company Profile

HCA Healthcare, Inc, through its subsidiaries, owns and operates hospitals and related healthcare entities in the United States. It operates general and acute care hospitals that offers medical and surgical services, including inpatient care, intensive care, cardiac care, diagnostic, and emergency services; and outpatient services, such as outpatient surgery, laboratory, radiology, respiratory therapy, cardiology, and physical therapy.